Beta 0.96 released

RWR 0.96 is done and available in Steam now, soon in Desura and BMTMicro. Check out the full change log here.

This time, the soldier level AI has been extended with the ability to determine spots where to deploy sandbag barriers to provide more cover in the battle area. I had had this one on the radar to implement for a long while, feels great to see it in action now!

On the general usability and indication improvements, the map view now visualizes troops distribution using squad size based cloud visuals rather than the numbers. This effectively also makes squad movement visible in the map view, enabling you to anticipate better where the troops in the faction are moving to and how long is it taking.

We’ve also extended the badge / award system a great deal. Campaign now comes with an initial set of ranked medals and titles that are granted to the player when reaching specific milestones. Currently there are vehicle destroying, sabotaging, general killing, stealth and exploration focused paths, we’ll likely see plenty more of these in the following updates. In one sense the awards feature makes a nice feedback system of what’s your typical playing style, but it may also hint new players of what you can / should do in the game.

Some new destroy targets have been placed around the maps, namely water tanks and mortar ammunition crates, but also an anti-air weapon emplacement in campaign for one of the enemy factions with an ability to prevent air drops until destroyed, making it a hugely important sabotaging target.

Finally, a feature requested by many since the game went to Steam Early Access a few months ago, the campaign now features the possibility to play with any available faction in the game!

But seriously, this update makes me happy. Recently me and a game dev buddy of mine were talking about some of the stuff in this update. Fun to see features we were wishing for come true! Thanks!
-Noble